Away From Home
by UltimateC3
Summary: When the strawhat pirates are somehow separated in half after an unusual storm, four of them find themselves stranded on a mysterious island in the middle of the Grand Line without a log pose. They need to survive, get off the island, and return to their crew before things get way out of hand.
1. Chapter 1

**Here we go, my first 'major' story. I'm mostly going to come up with this story as I go, if I plan on updating periodically (WHICH I DO!).**

**So yeah... the plot may be a bit cliché, but I need something easy to work with in order to deliver a somewhat 'entertaining read'.**

**I'm just as curious as you are to see how this plays out, so please feel free to review and support me! **

**In other words, DON'T BE AFRAID OF CRITICIZING MY STORY BECAUSE I'LL TRY TO BUILD OFF OF IT! Trust me, I don't get my feelings hurt very easily... and I'm not bragging, for those of you who thought that. **

**I don't own anything having to do with One Piece besides this attempt at a story.**

**Now with all my ranting aside, I present to you:**

_**Away From Home**_

* * *

It was dark.

It was foggy.

And it was extremely humid.

The island, like most supposedly uninhabited islands at night, was covered in a thick, eerie haze as wild insects and other small creatures could be heard scattering across the island floor. It was there where the four strawhat pirates had ended up at, shown a fraction of mercy by Mother Nature instead of drifting out to sea separately, where they would have awaited their inevitable deaths. They were detached from their family and ship, without a trace of where they were located or what experience they were in for.

On this island they were stranded and separated from the rest of their crew.

On this island they were four strong individuals who relied on each other.

* * *

?

_I know this feeling… I've experienced it many times before… It's quiet… much quieter than it should be…_

_My life chapters go running through my mind… and my future's blurred as I lose sight of my dream… and those I call family…_

_I know this is my limit, which I have reached before but have never been able to surpass… This is it… This must be it… _

_This is what… death feels like… _

_It's safe to say… that I've concluded that…_

_But I won't accept it._

_As I attempt to bring myself back to reality… I ask myself why? How? ...How did I end up like this…? There's a reason… Trivial things don't leave me in this type of condition…_

_I can hear my heart beating… loudly… I need to find out where I am…_

…_!_

_I can see …which means I'm alive… but I can't see clearly at all… everything's dark... My senses are coming back… and I feel that I'm laying on something soft… sand? ...It sort of feels like it but I can't tell…_

_But I'm not on the Sunny... I can hear the ocean waves... almost as clearly as my heartbeat..._

_...Where am I...?_

"Aghhh! Ahh…" _I moan as an incredibly sharp pain jolted through my body, especially around my abdomen… _

_I rub my hand over my torso and feel a hot liquid cover it..._

_Blood… and a lot of it… all over my stomach… it must be mine…_

"Sh…it…" _I barely squeeze it out of my mouth... I'm phasing out of consciousness… damn it… there's nothing I can do…_

_I wonder… if the others… are okay…_

* * *

?

"Where… am I?" I ask myself as I take in my surroundings. It's dark and extremely foggy and hot. I'm obviously not on the Sunny. From what I can make out, it looks like I'm on what appears to be an island. Not good.

I sit down on the shore of the 'island' and look out towards the ocean as the tide slowly runs up and down the coast. The moonlight slightly pierces through the fog and casts a peculiar glare on the island as it reflects on the water. This is not good at all and I can't remember anything…

…

The storm!

"Oh no… I'm stranded on an island… that must be it," I tell myself, trying to process my current life threatening situation. Where's everyone else? Are they ok? I can't even think, there are so many bad circumstances that could have played out from a lousy storm that somehow managed to overthrow us. I can remember now. I knew that storm was coming, just like every other one we encounter. Yet here I am sitting on a rock on a deserted island in terrible shape without any of my friends.

At night.

"I just need to calm down and think," I try and comfort myself as I replay my situation and the possible explanations in my head. The storm was extremely big, but we've encountered many just like that one before on the Grand Line.

"Robin…" She had fallen overboard if my memory serves me correctly. And then Zoro went in after her. Nothing out of the ordinary there. We waited for them to come up and then… I don't know what happened next. But if they fell overboard, then why the hell am _I_ stuck on an island!?

"Luffy… where are you?" I ask looking up into the sky. "Zoro, Usopp, Robin, Sanji, Franky, Brook, Chopper… where are all of you?"

I need to pull myself together and get out of this mess, or better yet, off of this island. But I still have no idea what is going on. This could be just be a dream for all I know.

I turn around and stare into the forest, determining my course of action. I'm not getting anything done just sitting here, and besides, I may not be the only one on this stupid island. I need to stay strong and look for my crewmates.

Then again, this island looks pretty creepy.

I then take a moment to study my personal well being. I'm relatively okay, save for a few scratches here and there, but nothing too ba-

"OH, CRAP! NO! Where's my log pose!?"

It's not on my wrist! Crap! Now I'm freaking out. The key to our survival as pirates has somehow disappeared from my wrist, so even if I was on a ship, I'd be as dead as I am now without it.

"How the hell did I lose it? Maybe it just fell off around here on the island…" I consider, trying to reassure myself and hang on to the extremely slim line of hope. But it's too dark to look, and if anyone else is on this island I need to find them.

So I overcome my near heart attack and set out through the dark foggy sky, with an attempt to find someone, hopefully a friend, while not evoking the wrath of this mysterious island.

* * *

?

"I knew it… I knew it would end like this… being hit by a storm and washing up on a deserted island left alone to die…" I cried, leaning under my small makeshift hut that I constructed for the night. This island is beyond scary and I hope Luffy or Zoro or someone finds me before I die of starvation or heat stroke or sickness or being attacked by a monster or…

"Grr…pull yourself together Captain Usopp! There's nothing to be afraid of on this little island! Except for maybe the lack of food and terrible man eating monsters in the forest…"

Just then I hear a strange noise and almost jump high enough to reach the moon, which of course is accompanied by a scream, but I then realize it was nothing but a cricket chirping in the eerily silent atmosphere.

"Where am I!? And why did I have to end up on such a creepy island!? Wait! …If I somehow washed up on this island after that storm, then there's probably a pretty good chance of someone else coming here… unless I was the only one who fell overboard. I don't remember. But the Sunny couldn't have gotten that far and I know Luffy and the others would come looking for me… but then again, it could have been a week since that stupid storm hit us since I just 'woke up' a little while ago…" I contradicted myself. This is scary. I can't even remember anything.

"LUFFY! ZORO! SANJI! HELP ME! ANYBODY!"

* * *

?

…Oh my. This is bad. I wonder where I am exactly.

All I remember is the storm and then I fell overboard and… how am I here? I can't swim. I should have just dropped to the bottom of the ocean yet here I am alive on an island of sorts with no idea where the others are.

This is strange and this island is unsettling. From where I am located on the coast, it looks to be unpopulated. By people, that is. There is a decent sized forest right at the top of the shore, from what I can make out through the thick fog and dark sky.

I need to look around and see if I can gather any information on where I am or if anyone lives here. I must get back to the Sunny and the crew. Were we shipwrecked, or was I the only one that got separated and ended up here? I can't think right now, my mind is completely blurred. My body is numb as well and I don't appear to have much energy in me.

I wonder what happened to the others and if they're alright. Hopefully I did not get stranded on an uninhabited island alone and far away from my crew, because if there is no information on this island that either tells me where I am or helps me survive for that matter, than there is absolutely nothing I can do.

It's too dark to start looking for information. I'm not even sure how long it has been since the hurricane. For the first time in a long time, I am completely lost with what to do. I stare out to see from the shore that I'm standing on, thinking about my crew and any positive situations that could have played out from the incident. I decide that I'll begin searching this island in the morning, when I can actually see.

I pray that this is nothing too serious.

**Well there ya have it...**

**Don't worry, this chapter wasn't supposed to make any sense to begin with so try not to judge the story yet.**

**It will all be explained my dear readers, so just continue to read and review for my sake.**

**Thanks...**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey everyone! I managed to squeeze in Chapter 2... yay!**

**You see, this chapter was supposed to be longer than this, and I really wanted to update today before I was hit with a tidle wave of school work... so I did. But I basically cut it in half. It was either cut it in half, like I did, and update it now... or wait until the end of the week and update the entire thing. So I picked the first option. But don't worry! I'll try and have the rest of my 'planned chapter' as chapter 3 by next week.  
Hopefully...**

_**Away From Home**_

**Chapter 2**

* * *

The sun had just begun to rise and the island was blasted by its warm radiance. The deep fog and threatening environment that had engulfed the island just hours ago had completely evaporated under the sun's rays. This, of course, did not go unnoticed by the new guests that had arrived the night before.

* * *

?

"Huh…? Morning… already?" I mumble, shifting around in my bed.

"I bet… Sanji-kun's already made… breakfast," I lean up preparing myself to wake up as I rub my eyes so I can open them. Strangely I am blinded by an immensely bright light and feel the top of my head begin to warm up.

Wait a minute…

"AHH, CRAP! DAMN IT!" I swear aloud. I'm not in my bed at all! And I have no idea if Sanji has made breakfast yet because I'm stuck on this damn island! Well that's definitely a spirit breaker. Waking up from an unusually good sleep and then finding out you're stranded on some stupid island in the middle of the ocean.

Crap.

I think back to last night. I had awoken on the shore not too far from where I am now. I had no idea what was going on and I still have no idea what is going on. Although I do know that my wrist feels unusually light.

"OH, CRAP! MY LOG POSE IS… Oh… yeah, that's right. I established that last night," I groan in frustration as I take in my surroundings now that I can actually _see_.

But I still have no idea what to do.

"Well I guess the only that I _can_ do is search around and see if I can find anything… or anyone hopefully," I tell myself, getting up from my spot in the sand where I fell asleep.

I begin walking up the shore to the small forest. It's not a huge forest, it just hasn't been affected by any _human development_, for lack of a better term.

"Well I guess if I am in fact _stranded_ here, I guess I could always start my attempt at survival by mapping this place out," I muse to myself thinking of the only thing I could enjoy about being here. But that's not important. I've got to find out where the hell I am and if anyone else is here, especially my nakama.

And so with my mind set on gathering the little information that seems to be available in a place like this, I dig deeper into the vegetation.

* * *

?

"_And now… cheer number… 734… Go… Captain… Usopp… Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…."_

* * *

?

I've been awake for quite a while now, considering I couldn't sleep very well last night. There are too many things flying around in my mind right now to worry about sleeping. I had already searched through a portion of the forest, and judging by the sun's location, I'd say I was in there for an hour or so.

I just came back to the shore where I first ended up at. I'm using this spot as my guide, so I don't wonder off and get lost. I haven't found anything of utter importance, but I did notice how there are very few signs of animal life in the forest atop the shore.

I suppose I'll go back in and continue my search for clues or information… or anything. My mind is still too fuzzy to remember how I got here in the first place and I seem to be a little on edge. I just need to focus on evaluating my situation; I can't let my worries of the crew overwhelm me at a time like this.

I look over my current location on the shore once again. I noticed a reef of sorts slightly sticking out of the water earlier this morning, which I used to officially mark this spot.

With my location concluded, I begin to randomly scan the sand around me out of simple curiosity. A few twigs, some rocks, a couple of broken shells… and something else. I kneel down to examine it at a closer level and find that it is darkened sand held together, probably by some sort of liquid. I gently feel it with the end of my finger while squinting my eyes and come to the conclusion that it is blood.

That's not good.

I think about how it got there, knowing that I wasn't physically injured. But I nervously check myself for any causes of blood hoping that I wouldn't find any. Even a small cut out here could be dangerous. It could easily become infected and increase the risk of death dramatically while surviving out in the wilderness. I'm sure Chopper-san would agree with me.

I'm relieved to find that I have no injuries at all, not even a bruise. But that doesn't change the fact that there is blood here in the sand. I look to see that there's also several other traces of blood in that relative area and I am almost excited to find that it had shaped a trail of sorts along the shore. I notice that it's very difficult to see, but being the exceptional archeologist that I am, I can fortunately make out the path. It looks relatively fresh as well, considering it hasn't been washed away by the tide yet. I begin investigating and following the path since it's been my only lead so far today. It gets harder and harder to see as I practically crawl across the shore, needing to be extremely close to see it.

And then it stops. And there's a remarkably large puddle of blood there with none beyond it. Well that was very short-lived. There's really nothing that I can make out of this, other than the fact that someone else is probably here, which is extremely important to say the least.

I lean up and inwardly smirk to myself, satisfied with my discovery. Now all I have to do is find this other 'person'. But taking into account that my clue is indeed blood, that obviously means the subject was injured… or worse.

"R-Robin…!?" I hear my name being called from an extremely familiar voice as my head snaps in the direction of the call at the speed of light. At first I thought it was too good to be true, but upon further staring with wide eyes, I find out that it's our navigator… Nami.

"ROBIN!" she yells in delight as she runs up and hugs me. I can't help but smile widely in relief that I've miraculously found one of my nakama. After a good thrity seconds of processes the cause of my delight, I decide to speak up.

"It's great to see you Nami-san. Are you okay?" I ask.

"Physically, yes. Mentally, no," she states with a worried look on her face. "What about you?"

"I feel the same way as you do. I have no idea what's going on," I inform the redhead.

"Can you remember anything specific about the storm? Because I have absolutely no idea how I got here or where the others are," she asks me.

"The only thing I remember is being hit by the storm and falling overboard. That's what I thought about when I first woke up. I have devil fruit powers so I sink in water, meaning there's no way I should have drifted on to this island," I state and look at the navigator who appears to be in deep thought. She then snaps out of it and looks up at me.

"Zoro…"

"Hmm? What about Zoro-san?" I question.

"He… went in after you when you fell… and that's all I remember," she says looking towards the ground.

"O-Oh…"

I stumble with my voice deep in thought. Once again, Zoro did not hesitate to come to my aid, even during a gigantic storm. It pains me to know that I'm responsible for my nakama getting hurt. A terrible pain jolts through my chest to my surprise as something dawns upon me. If Zoro went in after me… then where is he now? And was it because of him that I was able to make it to this island alive?

"…Umm… Nami-san? Do you know what happened to… Zoro?" I ask as I fumble over all my words for some bizarre reason. I can feel myself getting extremely nervous, but, like everything else that's going on here, I have no idea why. I know Zoro may be in trouble, but just a few hours ago I thought everyone was in trouble and I wasn't very nervous at all. I hate when I can't control my emotions.

"No I don't. I don't know what happened to anyone. This is bad Robin. It's one thing to be lost from the rest, but it's a whole other thing if something bad happened to them," she reasons, interrupting my mental evaluation.

…

"Nami? Do you happen to be bleeding anywhere?" I suddenly ask remembering my small discovery from a few moments ago. I can tell she's thrown off guard a little by the random question.

"U-Uhh… no. I don't think so," she says as she quickly checks over her body and then tilts here head and lifts her right eyebrow up at me.

"Look" I point down to the blood-stained sand right next to our feet. I made sure neither of us stepped on it during our conversation.

"Is that blood!?" she asks, clearly startled.

"Yes. It's not mine and you just said you weren't bleeding so it can't be yours. It starts over there and strangely ends up here. I have a safe bet that it's not an animal's, so if that's the case then there is someone else here." I tell her as she processes the information. She then spikes her head up and stares me in the face.

"You think so!? Well we better find them then! I haven't had much time to explore this so called _island, _so I'm not exactly sure where to start. I just began walking through the undergrowth when I suddenly saw something moving on the shore, and it was you." Nami explains.

"I walked around a bit this morning, but I didn't find anything significant," I tell her with a slight frown.

"Well Robin, I say we just start looking around to see if we can find something out of the ordinary"

"That's exactly what I had in mind. There isn't anything else to do and we have to do everything in our power to return to the rest. I believe it would be best if we each split up since we can cover twice as much ground that way," I recommend to the younger girl.

"Alright, that sounds like a plan. We'll meet back here by using that reef over there as a sign. Be careful Robin… and don't get lost. I wouldn't want to have to come looking for you," says Nami with an almost scared look on her face.

I smile to reassure her. "Yes of course Nami-san, we'll meet up here in about an hour or so. You be careful as well," I warn her.

"I'll try, but there's something about this place that gives me the creeps despite the sunny weather," she admits.

"I feel the same way. Hopefully we can find a source of people here, especially any of our crew. I just hope they are all okay. Something tells me that staying here long isn't a good idea," I wonder, doing a terrible job of lightening the mood of the situation.

"Yeah, me too. We could be a mile away from civilization or we could be the only two people on this damn island. Let's just start looking for _any_ information we can find," she ends the conversation as we both stare at each other for a few seconds before nodding and walking off in opposite directions. Nami walking towards the direction of the blood trail on the shore and Robin walking off towards the forest.

* * *

?

"…_And then I… looked 'em straight… in the eye… and said… Zzzzzzzzzzzzz…"_

* * *

_Nami_

Well here I go. Off to gather what little information I can to find out what the hell we have to work with on this godforsaken island. I've only been here for less than a day and I'm already sick to my stomach with it.

I continue to walk along the shore, scanning the edge of the forest and coast in hopes of seeing basically _anything_ move besides the waves of the ocean water. There's nothing. Plain and simple. This is stupid. There are just shells and rocks and sticks and trees and water and sand and whatever. And I can't even think clearly. I'm seriously just praying that we're not the only ones here, because even _if_ Robin knows how to survive on random islands, _I don't_, and we're still just as good as dead out here in the Grand Line.

I need a bath.

I mentally smack myself. I never thought I'd be saying this, but now's not the time to be worrying about taking a bath. I can't let Robin down! I need to focus and continue scouring the area. Hey… maybe if I somehow live through this, I can draw a map of this island.

Well there's a reason to pay attention.

I've walked a good half a mile already and I am sad to say that I've seen absolutely nothing. I haven't even seen any animals in the forest. You'd think that there would at least be some weird gross scorpions or island snakes or something… _Guuhhhhh… _I shutter just thinking about it.

_Yawwwwn… _Oh boy I'm tir-

"What's that...?" I interrupt my yawn as I see something up ahead on the shore. It's big, considering I can see it from this distance, and doesn't seem to be moving in any way. It's probably just a big piece of drift wood or something that isn't going to help me. But nonetheless, I head in its direction, determined to verify what it actually is. I begin getting closer yet I still can't make out what it is exactly, but I can see a part that almost seems a very faint green in color… that's unusual.

I start to quicken my pace towards the unknown object without even realizing it, and I finally get into close enough range to see-

…

"O-Oh…m-my… g-g-od…"

My mind literally shrivels in a span of seconds upon realizing the identity of the object now lying in the sand before me.

It's Zoro.

He's completely covered in dirt and dried blood, and his shirt is ripped open revealing a hideously massive gash in his abdomen. He has blood dried to the sides of his head and on every other part of his body that I can see. I feel my body go numb and my eyes start to water as I collapse on the sand next to his torn up body.

"Z-Zoro… w-what the h-hell… happened… t-to you…?"

**Boom! Done! Sorry for the cliffhanger, but my reasoning for it is all explained above.**

**Thanks! (a review would always be nice) :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**...**

**I'm alive... I think...**

**Uh... yeah... what has it been, 3 months almost?**

**Oh boy... So yeah, I'd like to apologize, sort of, to all you faithful readers out there... because I have legitimately not had ANY TIME THESE PAST COUPLE OF WEEKS! And yes, I know that sounds like 'a load of BS', but I'm being completely honest with you. There was really nothing I could do about it, and I know I shouldn't be complaining with all of you waiting patiently (thanks I appreciate it), but I have been working my butt off. It was pretty brutal.**

**Along the way I obviously got distant from this story, which normally happens when you don't have time to continue it for 3 months, but incase any of you were worrying, NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS I WILL NEVER DISCONTINUE THIS STORY! EVEN IF IT TAKES ME 20 YEARS!**

**Okay, I'm sure none of us would want me to work on this story for 20 years, but still, these past couple of months have been like a one time thing which means I probably won't pause the story for that long again.**

**And for the record, I've basically been chipping away at this chapter randomly over the past months (whenever I had more than 30 minutes of free time), so if you find that it's rather choppy and sporadic, I'm sorry... I hope it isn't too bad though.**

**Well without further delay, I present to you my long-lost chapter of Away From Home. It's kind of a boring chapter, but most beginning chapters of stories are somewhat boring compared to the rest.**

_**Away From Home**_

**Chapter 2**

* * *

...

"_L-Luffy… can you hear me…? I'm sorry for disappointing you… I-I know that you need nothing less than the greatest swordsman in the world… I've let you down… p-please forgive me… I solemnly swear… from this moment forward… that I will never lose again…! Until the day comes… when I defeat him and take his title… I will never… never be defeated! …IS THAT OKAY… KING OF THE PIRATES…!?"_

* * *

...

Nami was frozen. She was knelt down next to the lifeless body of the Straw Hat's swordsman, Roronoa Zoro. The slow tides continuously made their way up to a few feet away from them in a periodic motion as the calm breeze whistled through the silent air. Nami was having an incredibly difficult time keeping her composure as her chest tightened and her body went numb. She swallowed hoarsely and blinked her few tears away as she looked over him, examining his current state.

"Z-Zoro… hey, wake up…" she pleaded as she gently shook him, hoping he would just wake up from an idiotic nap.

However, fate was not kind.

"Hey…! Z-Zoro… come on! Get up…!" she began shaking him roughly for a few seconds until she stopped herself, "His heart beat!"

She had gotten too worked up that she completely forgot the one sign that would tell her if he was alive, his heart beat. She nervously lowered her ear to his chest, knowing that it all came down to a simple beating sound. Her heart began to beat from the fear of losing her crewmate and it became increasingly hard to hear the other things around her. Slowly, she took a deep breath and focused on her hearing ability, ready to determine the state of the swordsman.

_Thump… Thump… … Thump… … … Thump…_

"H-He's alive!" she panted after hearing the irregular beating noise of Zoro's heart. It was extremely faint and uneven, which was probably very bad and she wasn't a doctor, but he was alive.

For the moment.

"…What am I supposed to do? Ummm… Gah! I have no idea! Damn it! Chopper where are you!?" she yelled in a combination of panic and frustration. She looked up into the sky and slowly closed her eyes, taking in a deep breath. "Okay, calm down… I need to think… His wounds are deep and they need to be treated, but I don't know about his heart beat," she cursed at herself for not being able to think.

"He's too heavy for me to move, and his sporadic heart beat tells me that I don't have time to treat his wounds. Preventing his heart from stopping is the most important thing!" she spoke to herself, quickly analyzing the situation and her options.

"Come on! THINK! DAMN IT! He could die any second now!" Nami stared down at his body, searching for any type of idea in her extremely foggy mind. She couldn't think clearly to begin with and now her crew mate was slowly dying right next to her. Suddenly, an idea hatched into her head and she went with it, since it was the only thing she could think of.

"Robin! I bet she'll know how to handle this!" she looked out along the shore in the direction she came, seeing nothing but the island itself. "But damn it, she's so far away," her eyes turned to the green-haired swordsman, examining his condition once again.

She knew Robin was smart and had some experience and knowledge in the medical field. It obviously wasn't close to Chopper's intellect, but Robin wasn't a doctor, she was an archeologist. Either way, she probably knew more than Nami did, and any help would be worth it at a desperate time like this.

"I've got to try! Hopefully she hasn't gone too far… she's the only hope we have for saving Zoro," she told herself as looked back at Zoro once more before sprinting down the shore the way she came, yelling the archeologist's name frantically.

The sand was beginning to heat up as the sun was now directly over the island. Robin had taken her investigation of the island relatively slow, yet she could already tell she was becoming tired and slightly dehydrated. She had found nothing during her trip across the shore and her short time in the forest. As she walked to the edge of the forest, she leaned against a tree to study her surroundings once again, while positioning herself out of the sun's blazing rays.

"…I wonder how miss navigator's doing," she spoke aloud and looked down to examine herself. She had no shoes on, or socks, since she had not had any to begin with, and her feet were beginning to get scorched by the hot sand. The jeans that she had been wearing were ripped around her right knee and her left shin, and her light, ivy patterned v-neck shirt had a hole in it by her stomach.

A few clouds were beginning to roll in past the sun, but the rising temperature continued to show no signs of slowing down. Robin was never a huge fan of excruciatingly hot climate, but neither were most people, and she just needed to concentrate on conserving her energy. Getting too hot out here was a bad thing, but she still needed to protect herself from the sun. After walking for almost an hour or so, Robin decided to head back to their meeting place to check with Nami's results… if she even had any. She was rather disappointed that she didn't find anything but staying together with Nami was the most important thing to focus on at a time like this. Losing each other would be like losing their way to survival.

Settling on heading back, Robin turned and walked back the way she came, following the exact trail she took to get here. The sun had been slightly extinguished from the white clouds above and the sand cooled down considerably, much to Robin's liking. Now she could actually walk without cringing in pain each time she took a step. She gracefully studied her surroundings which began to all look the same even to _her… _and that wasn't a good thing. Nevertheless, the archeologist did not lose sight of her trail back to the reef, which she could now see.

Upon arriving in the vicinity of the location, Robin noticed Nami had not returned, but did not think much of it. "She's probably heading back now. I doubt anything has happened to her-"

Her self-communication was cut off as a ruffling sound came from the trees not too far from where she was standing. Cautiously, she peered over to the strange disturbance in the forest only to make out a faint brownish object moving slowly between the leaves. Seeing as though this was her best trace of anything all day, Robin slowly walked towards the object to get a better look. All she could see was the color brown shaking almost nervously amid the foliage. It seemed rather large, considering the place she saw the color was a couple feet off the ground, so she wasn't going to take her chances. 'Perhaps it's a monkey' she thought to herself, secretly wishing it was wearing a straw hat and had the letter D for a middle initial. Moving did not seem to be part of the thing's plan, so Robin decided to take matters into her own hands… literally.

Crossing her hands over her chest in the shape of an x, the raven haired archeologist focused on pulling the 'creature' out of the forest to identify it, but was suddenly interrupted by a certain navigator.

"ROBIN! I FOUND YOU! QUICK! YOU HAVE TO COME WITH ME! WE DON'T HAVE MUCH TIME!"

Robin broke her concentration from the object in the forest and blinked confusingly at her orange-haired crew mate who was running across the shore to her. Robin gazed back to the forest only to see that the thing had left, much to her disappointment. She quickly put that aside and focused on her troubled crew mate who was now a few feet away from her, gasping for air from running all this way.

"Gah… Robin… quick… you need to… come with me… now…!" Nami sputtered, placing her hands on her knees and looking down to gain her breath.

"I heard you before Nami-san, what's wrong? Did something happen?" the archeologist questioned.

"Yeah… but we've gotta hurry Robin… I'll explain it to you when we get there… though I doubt you'll even need an explanation… come on!" she yelled as she grabbed Robin's hand and started running off to the direction she came.

"Nami-san… where are we going?" Robin was very startled by the navigator's sudden panicked expression, but she knew something was going on so decided to follow. "Are we… almost there?"

"Yeah… it should be right… up here…" She said between breaths, "There!"

Robin squinted looking straight ahead to where Nami was pointing and saw something lying on the shore. The only thing she could make out from it was a small patch of green.

* * *

?

I couldn't stop shaking. I checked through the leaves to see if the 'thing' was still there and I was relieved to see it nowhere nearby. So there were other people on this island? Well I wasn't even sure if it was a person… it could have been Bigfoot for all I know. It almost caught me but I think I was able to duck just in time. These stupid leaves are so noisy. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get a clear glimpse of it since the risk of being found kept ringing through my head… or how scared I was (not that I'd ever admit it). Even if it was a person, judging by the fact that this is practically a deserted island, I wouldn't say they'd be friendly. They're probably crazy savages who boil people alive and leave their bones for the vultures…

O-Oh no…

But still, I have to keep my guard up even if they are normal civilized people because I need to get back to Luffy and the others. They could be other bloodthirsty pirates as well, and if I get caught it's all over. Or they could be terrifying monsters… What did I do to deserve this? Separated from my crew and left on an un-modernized island with other strange people or monsters or whatever the heck they were.

...

Okay. The crew is counting on me to return so I can't let them down. I'll avoid the other 'things' on the island and survive on my own until I can find a way to get off this island… if that's even possible. It's time the Brave Captain Usopp showed these island dwellers what happens when you mess with him…

…_gulp_

I think my _can't go on a deserted island or I'll die_ disease is kicking in…

...

"LUFFY! COME SAVE MEEEE!"

* * *

...

"W-What… on earth happened?"

Robin stared intently at the body before her with wide eyes, not believing what she was seeing. Zoro was lying in the sand in shambles, and didn't appear to be alive. She didn't take her crewmates being in pain very well and continued to stare worriedly at the swordsman below her. Her sudden panic became even worse as the realization of the situation hit her. _'Nami said that Zoro jumped in to save me… then if that was true, why is he like this and I'm fine…? It doesn't make any sense…'_

"I have no idea. I was just walking until I saw something on the beach… and it turned out to be… him." Nami's voice pulled Robin out of her deep thinking and back to the reality of the situation.

"I don't know how he got like this… but he's alive! I checked before and he was breathing, although his heart beat was pretty uneven… I just had no clue what to do so I went to get you. I figured you'd know better than me at a time like this. I have absolutely no idea how to help him and I didn't want to make things worse, so I just left to get you," Nami explained with a worried look plastered to her face.

She looked back at Robin who was still staring intently at the swordsman. "So… so do you know what we should do Robin?" Robin looked up at her friend, thinking of an answer to her crucial question. She could tell this island and the crew's separation were already taking their toll on the orange-haired thief.

Robin knelt down next to Zoro, looking at his chest and examining the wounds he suffered sometime recently. Nami also walked closer to the green-haired man to get an idea of what Robin was looking at.

"Well these wounds are quite new, so he must have received them sometime during or after the storm," she told Nami as she continued to inspect the swordsman's scarred body. "I have no idea how he got these, especially this deep one here," Robin pondered while pointing to the large gash in the middle of his torso, "but we need to do something about them quickly."

"Okay Robin, I have no idea what I'm supposed to do, but don't hesitate in giving me orders…" Nami declared. Standing around idly while one of her friends died was not on her to-do list for the day. Zoro put himself in danger to protect the crew countless of times, so Nami wasn't ready to let him die from some stupid unknown reason when the rest of the crew was gone, and she was sure Robin wasn't going to either. Plus, if they were going to make it off this island alive, they _needed_ Zoro.

"Hmm… I suppose the only thing we can do now is try and treat his wounds…" the archeologist said, looking up to her crewmate. "I still don't know what's on this island, but we'll have to search for some type of herb to help him. For now, we'll just have to stop any future bleeding and let him deal with the rest."

"Right… If you need my help, just tell me what to do," the navigator reassured.

And with that, Robin stood up and began taking off her jeans.

"Uh… Robin…? W-What are you doing…?" asked Nami, utterly confused.

"We need to bandage him up and we don't have time to search for other supplies, so we need to make use of what we have. And it doesn't seem like you'll be much help in this situation," the historian stated, hinting towards the navigator's short skirt and thin shirt. Realizing what the other woman meant, Nami peered down to look at her insufficient amount of apparel.

"O-Oh… I see," she mumbled, rubbing the back of her neck timidly.

The archeologist just smiled. "Don't worry about it Nami-san, but you should be careful not to expose too much of yourself to the sun. It could be extremely dangerous, especially out here. So I would either find something to cover up with or try and stay in the shade," she told the younger pirate while beginning to rip the bottom part of her magenta pants.

"You're right; once we fix up Zoro we can head into the forest and find a place to rest. But first we need to worry about reviving this idiot," Nami exclaimed, pointing to the first mate.

As Nami felt a wave of confidence and security wash over her for the first time since they had been separated, Robin had ripped the bottom half of her pants into individual strips. She laid the pile of strips on the sand as she put the remains of her jeans back on, only to find that they were turned into shorts, just reaching mid-thigh level.

"Hey… those look kinda good on you Robin…" commented Nami, apparently more interested in her friend's fashion style than her half dead nakama.

"…You think so? They're kind of short…" Robin mumbled while studying her figure.

"You're overreacting Robin. They look great and they go perfectly with your shirt. You should wear shorts more often."

"Hmm… maybe I should…"

"G-Gah… L-L-Lu…gah…"

"What was that Nami-san?"

"Hmm? I didn't say anything…"

"Oh… well then what was that-"

...

"Z-ZORO!"

"…Zoro-san!"

The two girls were soon interrupted from their fashion show by Zoro who, not known by the two, was very much still alive. The swordsman had somehow rolled over and got onto his hands and knees, hanging his head down towards the sand as he panted heavily.

Both Nami and Robin dashed to the struggling first mate's side and got down on each side of him to examine his condition.

"Zoro! You're alive! What happened!? Are you okay!? Come on, tell us!" the loud navigator interrogated.

"Now isn't the time to be asking him questions Nami-san," the historian reasoned.

Zoro continued to breathe heavily without looking up. "Are you alright Zoro-san? It's us, Nami and Robin. We need to look at your wounds and bandage them before they open up again. Can you lie back down on the sand?" the archeologist asked in a rather soothing tone, trying to communicate with the barely conscious swordsman.

"Uh… gah… L-Lu… guhhh… Lu… ffy…" Zoro breathed as he spat up blood continuously. Robin and Nami both looked extremely bothered to see one of their toughest nakama desperately calling their captain's name, especially in the horrible shape he was in. They both knew that if Zoro was fully conscious right now, he would never let them to see him in this condition.

"Z-Zoro just hang on! We're gonna fix you up so just hang on and don't give up!" yelled Nami anxiously, but her request fell on empty ears as the swordsman just spat up more blood and continued his jagged breathing.

"Nami-san hand me those bandages over there," Robin asked, pointing to the denim strips she had made just moments ago. Nami complied and quickly moved to the pile of makeshift bandages as Robin tried to steady Zoro, holding his shoulder to keep him from falling flat on his wounds.

"Ahhh… gahhh… uhhhh… d-da… mn…" the swordsman subconsciously swore, tightening all his muscles in pain and slouching towards the sand as Robin tried to hold him still.

"Here, Robin!" Nami quickly handed the bandages to Robin who slowly let go of the swordsman, hoping he could hold himself up for a few seconds.

"He looks terrible… Do you think he'll make it…?" questioned the thief worriedly.

"I'm not sure… He seems to be in terrible pain and I'm not even sure if he's fully conscious right now. The only thing we can do is apply these bandages and hope he can keep himself alive until we find some kind of treatment."

They both looked at their distressed nakama. Robin hated seeing any of her family in pain and as good as she was at hiding it, the archeologist was extremely distraught in seeing Zoro like this. They all came to her rescue at Enies Lobby, including Zoro who was still slightly suspicious of her, and they all put their lives on the line just to bring her back. Robin finally found a family to call her own and pledged, along with the rest of them, she would do everything in her power to help everyone fulfill their dreams together.

Nami, on the other hand, never hid any of her emotions, and although she always badgered Zoro about debt and being lazy and practically everything else, she cared deeply for the green haired man, much like every other member of her bizarre crew. She also knew that both her and Robin would never be able to live with themselves if Zoro died, and she didn't even want to think about how Luffy would react to something like that.

"Uhh… Lu… ffy… I-I'm… gah… s-so… rry…" Zoro panted as his body collapsed. Robin and Nami jolted to his sudden movements and were able to catch him in time, making sure he didn't smash against the sand and reopen his wounds.

"Hey! Zoro!? You alright!? Come on, get up!" yelled Nami, "Crap… I-Is he still alive Robin!?"

"Yes, his heart is still beating. I assume he lost consciousness again," Robin guessed, "We need to get these bandages on quickly and bring him into the shade. We now know that he is alive, so we'll just have to wait until he comes back again."

With that, the two women gently lowered Zoro's back onto the sand, careful not to harm him in any way. Robin inspected his torso for what was probably the tenth time that day and examined which wounds needed to be bandaged more heavily.

"I suppose we'll need to remove his shirt… or the remains of it anyway," Robin looked at the navigator who simply reflected the historian's action with an innocent look on her face.

Nami looked back down at the body of the first mate and back to Robin, "You're the doctor here Robin… so you lead and I'll follow."

Zoro had been wearing his signature white T-shirt and black pants that he wears ninety percent of the time aboard the Sunny. The entire front of it had turned red due to his injuries and there were rips wherever there were cuts, which was basically everywhere. Robin decided it would be easier if she just ripped the rest off of him and use it as extra bandages. Nami helped removed all the remaining cloth from his upper body and watched as Robin began wrapping her improvised bandages around his torso, while starting down near his waist.

"Hahhh…Now all we need to do is tuck these underneath him and around to tie them up," Robin told the navigator, wiping sweat off her forehead.

"Alright, so how do you want to do this? I lift, you tuck… or I tuck, you lift," asked the exhausted pirate, "You do know how heavy this brick is, don't you?"

"Hmm… Yeah… I think I could support him with some extra hands and then you can wrap them under, does that sound okay?" the raven-haired archeologist reasoned.

"Sure. Just make sure you don't hurt yourself…"

Robin flashed her trademark smile, "Don't worry, I won't. Just tell me when you've wrapped them all."

"Gotcha," Nami smiled as she prepared to wrap the strips around Zoro's body as quickly as possible. Robin crossed her arms across her chest, sprouting countless arms from the sand all around the swordsman's body, slowly lifting him into the air as Nami wrapped the bandages tightly around his back, tying them at the end.

"Alright, that's it… You can let go now Robin," Nami signaled. The arms gently lowered the green-haired man's heavy body back down to the sand, as each arm collapsed into beautiful pink cherry blossoms. Robin let her arms drop at her sides and let out a big sigh, glad that they had finished their work.

"Nice job Robin! Now we just need to bring him into the shade, which doesn't seem like it'll be easy…" Nami stated while admiring their work, "I guess we'll have to think of some plan so that we don't exhaust ourselves."

"I can take care of it Nami-san. I'll just need you to go ahead and find an area where we can settle," reassured the historian as she bloomed several feet from the bottom of Zoro, slowly 'walking' him towards the forest.

"Wow Robin, you really are the handiest person I know…" mused Nami, causing Robin to smile towards her, "I guess I'll go and try and find a spot in there, though I honestly have no idea what I'm looking for," Nami pouted, staring into the deep forest in the island's center.

"I'm sure any place will be fine Nami-san, as long as we know where it is. Once Zoro-san recovers, I believe things will get much easier and we can analyze our situation once more." Robin smiled at Nami, which seemed to cheer her up a bit as she made her way into the forest.

"Alright Robin, I'll clear a path for you and come back when I've found a good place to settle. If you need help just yell," Nami shouted, waving at the archeologist who was walking up the shore next to Zoro's moving body.

"Be careful Nami-san."

"I will. Same with you two," the navigator smirked, taking one last glance at her two nakama before delving into the forest.

Robin smiled as she watched her friend disappear into the forest until she could no longer see the orange-haired navigator. She transferred her line of vision to her unconscious companion next to her, feeling his peaceful nature spread to her. Sensing this burst of confidence, Robin looked up into the sky, thinking about all her other nakama and hoping they were alright. A reddish orange glow began to illuminate the island sky as the sun slowly set in the west. Robin's mind began to drift back across her life timeline, back to Saul, back to her mother, back to Ohara, and ending with Luffy, Zoro, Nami, Usopp, Sanji, Chopper, Franky, Brook, and the Thousand Sunny. She seemed to subconsciously skip all of the countless horrors and focus only on the joyful moments. With her senses returning to her, Robin realized she had a job to do and she couldn't let everyone down.

Feeling this new sense of assurance, the raven-haired archeologist lifted her head and set after the navigator with the first mate in tow.

* * *

**We'll there we go, the third installment of Away From Home. I thank you all for waiting patiently for me to sort out my 'work overload' issues and promise I will try to continue a smooth pace with this story. Besides final exam week in the beginning of June, I should be able to update at least twice a month from now on. I'm not sure where this story will take me, but I hope for the best and appreciate everyone's continued support.**

**See ya next time! (Don't forget to review, include advice, positively criticize, yada yada yada...)**


	4. Chapter 4

**Bleh...**

**I'm back, and although I didn't meet my May deadline, I got another chapter in before finals... It took longer than I thought, but after this week, it'll be smooth sailing for me and this story.**

**Hoorah!**

**I'd also like to say thank you for all of you faithful readers out there (even if you don't review), and I greatly appreciate your support. My goal isn't to generate the most amount of reviews or anything stupid like that, but I thank all of you for forcing me to get my lazy butt up and write this.**

**This is another boring chapter, but whatever... The next couple of chapters after this will be much more lively, I assure you!**

_**Away From Home**_

**Chapter 4**

* * *

Two days had passed since the Strawhat pirates were hit by an unforgiving storm. They were separated, without a trace as to where the others were, and alone. It was the second night on the mysterious island, where both the navigator and archeologist of the crew had ended up, along with their severely wounded first mate.

The two females of the group had mapped out some of the area covered during the day, before coming across Zoro's unpleasant body lying on the shoreline. Aiding him and his condition while witnessing him gain consciousness, they ventured into the island's forest, intent on finding an area to camp for the night.

Nami and Robin had found a fairly open spot; just yards away from the forest's edge where they decided to stop and regroup. Large trees and vines surrounded them on all sides and they were comforted by short grass growing underfoot. The moon angled itself above the water, giving a clear reflection of itself and lighting up the shore. The two were shaded by the trees, forming a type of canopy to keep them closed in, which they hadn't decided was a good or bad thing. Keeping Zoro nearby, the two lay out on the grass with the purpose of getting some well deserved rest.

"Where do you think the others are right now, Robin?" Nami asked, staring up at the night sky through a small crack in the trees.

"I'm not sure… but I wouldn't be too worried about them. I know they can handle themselves. You should try and believe in them more, Nami-san…" responded Robin, turning her head to look at her orange-haired counterpart.

"I know… I trust them, it's just that… I-I'm not exactly sure…" the navigator stuttered while trying to analyze her own emotions.

"We'll be with them soon, I'm sure of it. Luffy-san won't stop until he finds us, even if it takes tearing up the entire Grand Line," thought Robin as she turned her gaze towards the soundless swordsman lying a few feet from the two. "We should be more concerned for ourselves. We need to make sure Zoro-san is safe, but we'll just have to wait until he responds…"

"Yeah, you're right… Being separated from everyone else is one thing, but losing one of them is a whole different story, especially Zoro. We need to wake him up so he can help us get the hell off this island." Nami pouted.

Robin smiled at the navigator's hot-headedness. Although Zoro did indeed move earlier during the day, he was still in extreme danger. The archeologist knew that anything could happen, and did not rule out the fact that they could both wake up tomorrow and find the swordsman dead.

"Nami-san…" Robin said with a more serious expression.

"Hmmm?"

"We must remember that in a place like this… there is no telling what might happen. Zoro-san may be better by tomorrow… or he could die in our sleep… and so could we."

"…"

"We still don't know what's on this island, so we must keep our guard up at all times and consider every available option and outcome…" the archeologist looked at the money loving thief with a determined look, "If we want to make it off this island, then we must work our hardest in order to survive; we cannot be weakened by anything." Robin finished speaking, waiting for her friend's response. Hopefully she didn't scare her _too_ much.

"Y-Yeah… Alright, Robin… Don't worry, 'cause you can count on me," the navigator returned Robin firm poise. "We'll make it off this island together…" she paused, looking back at the green-haired man. "All three of us."

"Hmmm…" Robin made her trademark smile, turning to look up at the trees while accepting her partner's commitment. "We should get some sleep Nami-san, if we are to search more tomorrow and help Zoro-san, we'll need some rest."

"You're right… Well, goodnight Robin. Hopefully we can make it through this night okay…" Nami mumbled, turning on her side and slowly closing her eyes.

"Yes… goodnight Nami-san." And with that, Robin did the same thing, resting her mind and body for the day that's to come.

* * *

?

"Huh… ah… gah… d-damn… guh… it…" I could hardly breathe. I had no idea where I was and the pain kept getting worse.

"Gah… where the hell… am I… ah…" I leaned up against a nearby tree and looked up around me, taking in my surroundings. Trees, vines, and more trees… Reminded me of that sky island place, except for the whole gigantic trees and weird thunder god thing. Boy was that annoying…

My chest was throbbing violently. It appeared that I had gotten injured recently, but I couldn't remember a thing and that wasn't good. Just where the hell was I, and how did I get here? All I remembered was waking up and being surrounding by a shit load of plants…

I continued to pant against the tree as I tried to ignore the pain flooding through my worn out body. My mind was racing everywhere and it soon slowed down as I began thinking about the crew. Where were all of them? Where was Luffy? Where were Usopp, Nami, Dumbass, Chopper, Robin, Franky, and Brook? Considering I couldn't remember a thing and I had absolutely no idea where I was, something must have happened, and if I was the only one gone, I had no doubt Luffy was looking everywhere from the refrigerator to the end of the Grand Line for me.

But none of that changed the fact that I could hardly breathe.

I was abruptly interrupted from my subconscious musing by a sharp screech from a large, black bird above me, most likely some type of hawk. So there were living things here after all… I had heard nothing but myself panting since I had "woken" up.

Well, who knows…? The crew may have just stopped at some random island to shut Luffy up, and I may have just randomly wondered into a forest on my own. Nothing out of the ordinary there…

And I may have just woken up not remembering anything…

And I _also_ may have just woken up with a huge gash in my chest…

…

Something was certainly going on here…

My mind reverted back to my surprisingly bad condition. I don't know how I got it, but I found that I had a nasty slash across my chest. That's going to leave another scar… just lovely. I had a hard time inspecting it with all the rangy bandages wrapped around my torso. They didn't look like the ones Chopper usually put on me, and the job wasn't as well done. They were rough and were soaked with blood around my chest, and the more and more I looked at them, the more and more they looked like the color purple.

Definitely weird.

"Uh… I gotta get the hell… out of this place. Damn… it… I better not be… lost…" I muttered to myself as I gritted my teeth and pushed off of the tree. I began slowly walking, or limping, with the intention of finding something that didn't look like a plant.

"Hmm…?!"

I suddenly heard a slight rustling in a nearby bush behind me, causing me to turn around at the speed of light as I cringed in pain. I guess I turned around a little too quickly… I stared intently at the source of the sound, waiting for something to jump out at me and make my day. Fortunately, after waiting a minute or two, nothing of that nature happened, so I just shrugged it off as a small animal or something and continued to walk in a random direction. I inwardly sighed, somewhat thankful that I wasn't mauled by a rabid bear or whatever. Normally I'd be more than happy to test out a few moves on some woodland creatures, but even I had limits. I knew my 'random' wound was quite severe, and I had to take care of myself regardless of the situation.

And this day was already shitty enough.

"Grr… I got to find… the others, but I have no clue… where I am…" I declared, finding it harder and harder to talk as the time went on. Knowing well that I wouldn't get anything done sitting around, I continued trekking through the untamed forest, hoping to see a familiar face sooner or later.

* * *

?

"Grrr… Geez, Chopper! Would you stop screeching like an animal?!" I yelled in my sleep after hearing a loud, high pitched noise, most likely from the reindeer. Keeping my eyes closed with the intention of getting more sleep, I silently awaited the retort of the fuzz ball, which would probably be something along the lines of _'I am an animal, you bastard!'_. After a few seconds of complete silence, I decided to open my eyes for the first time that day to see what was with Chopper. The doctor always yelled immediately after someone commented about his _species_. Leaning up from my bed to prepare to check on my friend, I was greeted with an immense ray of light blinding my eyes.

I'm definitely not getting anymore sleep now.

After I let my eyes adapt to the brightness of the room, which was supposed to be dark in the first place, I was able to see everything. Trees, vines, more trees, and more vines. Well there certainly weren't trees in the men's quarters of the Sunny, so I must have still been dreaming. But I must say, it was quite beautiful-

W-Wait a minute…

…

Crap…

"N-NOOOOOOO!" I cried, looking up at the tall trees while everything came back to me. "I'm not on the Sunny at all! I'm still on this stupid island!" I clenched my fists and kneeled over onto the ground, asking why this had to happen to me. My dream of being woken up by my little reindeer buddy was completely shattered as I looked around my makeshift campground. I was still alone on this forsaken island which probably housed every type of monster imaginable. If I hadn't sworn to believe in Luffy and the gang, I most likely would have been crying right now…

Although, despite not waking up in my hammock on the Sunny, I was dead sure I heard something. I stood up, brushing the dirt off of my pants and looked all around me to see if anything changed. Everything was just the same as it was last night; quiet, nothing but plants to look at, and… scary. Now that I think about it, I could have been woken up by a monster's battle cry…

O-Oh… n-no…

"I-I've got to do something about this! I can't just sit around while the rest of the crew is missing! Some of them might even be here on this island… A-And if Luffy was here, he'd never give up!" I declared to myself. The crew may be relying on me, and we've come too far to let each other down. Preparing to dive into the unforgiving wilderness of the island, I turned to go pick up my supplies and bravely venture across the jungle.

"Man, it's a good thing I still have these…" I muttered, signaling to my Kabuto and satchel. I walked over and slung my bag over my shoulder while grasping the large slingshot in my hand. Taking a deep breath, I began heading out of my deforested circle and into the forest itself.

"_Gulp_… Well, I guess this is it…" I stated nervously. Pushing away the stray branches in front of me, I delved into the jungle, intent on finding _anything_.

* * *

_Robin_

The sun rose early in the east, cascading its radiance through the island trees and onto my face, waking me instantly. I slowly opened my eyes, ready to be blinded by the excruciatingly bright light, only to see a thin cloud graze across the sun and create a shaded region over our area. I leaned up in a sitting position and stretched out my arms and legs while letting a deep yawn escape my mouth. After allowing my eyes to register the lighter environment, I took in my surrounding once again. The trees that surrounded us gave off a mysteriously peaceful elegance and sun's rays seemed to create sparkles in the air, as they gracefully lit up the grass.

Although this island could be the death of us, it was really quite lovely. It seemed like a completely different piece of land than the one we washed up on a day ago.

My eyes slowly drifted to my orange haired companion who was sleeping soundlessly a few yards away from me. It looked as though all here troubles had melted away last night, and left her smiling happily in her sleep.

I smiled as well and reverted my eyes to myself, focusing on my condition for the time being. I frowned as I took in my messy appearance, with my magenta pants ripped off to a few inches above my knees. My thin shirt had a small hole in it near my stomach and a few grass stains from the ground, but nothing overly serious. I had gone the entire day yesterday without any footwear, which could become a problem in the future. My hair is probably a mess… not that I have mirror to see it with, but I can tell. Nothing really life threatening, but I care nonetheless.

I was suddenly pulled out of my self-analysis when I heard a loud shriek from up above me. Curious to find out the source of the noise, I looked up and saw a great big hawk flying just above the treetops. I continued to stare at it for a few moments, studying its size and characteristics, somewhat amazed at the bird's exotic beauty.

It was a rather large bird…

…

I lowered my gaze back down to my eyelevel only to find my head immediately jolt back up to the sky where the bird flew just moments ago.

"A bird…" I told myself aloud. So there were animals on this island after all… I had gone the entire day yesterday not seeing a single living organism, besides plants of course. It was very strange in fact, and I had asked myself countless times yesterday of why I hadn't seen any animals. I looked over to Miss Navigator to see if I was still on the same island as before. In the last five minutes after I woke up, this island had seemed completely different than it was a day ago…

It was peaceful, the sun was shining and the weather was perfect, and there were birds flying through the sky. I definitely wouldn't mind being here if it was under different circumstances. My thought process then changed to the very _circumstances_ we were dealing with. My eyes fell from the sky back to the ground, wandering our little campsite for the second time that morning. I began thinking of the all the others. The childish rubbery captain, the cowardly marksman, the lovesick cook, the little reindeer doctor, the immature cyborg shipwright, and the perverted skeleton musician. I sighed, hoping they were somehow safe together. After everything that has happened so far, I wouldn't be able to take being separated from my nakama once again. It would simply be too much to bear…

I mentally shook myself awake at the thought. I might have been separated from a majority of my friends, but I still had one of the greatest navigators in the world and the demon hunter himself with me. Reminding myself about the situation regarding the swordsman, I turned my body around to where the swordsman was laying. As my eyes slowly made their way to the spot where he lay unconscious, I felt a slight chill down my spine, warning me not to get my hopes up. My eyes finally made it to his resting place and I felt my heart skip a beat. My breath got caught in my throat and my eyes widened in shock as a bead of sweat rolled down my face.

…

He was gone.

* * *

**Boring, huh? Don't worry, cuz it'll only get better from here on out!**

**Thank you all and see you next time!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey everyone! Yeah, yeah, I'm late as usual...but at least I updated again this month! That's a pretty pathetic accomplishment, considering I'm only five chapters in, but I've been involved in a lot of crap lately...and it's annoying. This chapter took much longer than I expected, but it's finally done! I greatly appreciate everyone's support and I will continue to bust my ass, if need be, to continue this story. (Or I should say, update sooner, since I will ALWAYS be continuing this story!)**

**I hate unfinished things, especially stories. And if there's anything I hate more than unfinished stories, it's hypocrisy. So now you know that no matter how long it takes, you can always look forward to another chapter in the future. (Until the end of the story of course...)**

**Now with my pointless rambling aside, I present to you...**

_**Away From Home**_

**Chapter 5**

* * *

_Robin_

My body momentarily froze as I looked at the empty spot where the swordsman once lay. I was inwardly hoping that I had simply forgotten where he was lying, but I knew that wasn't the case.

…He was gone.

I whipped my head around me, searching almost desperately for the green haired man. My eyes darted to the navigator of our ship, and sighed that she was still there…and I wasn't going crazy. But Zoro was not there, he was not where we had left him, and he was nowhere to be seen. If I wasn't the cool-headed Nico Robin herself, I probably would have been panicking…a lot. I would even be thinking about this if he were fine. Having Zoro randomly disappear was by no means a strange occurrence, but he was barely alive…we didn't even know _if_ he was alive.

The consequences of what could have happened to our crew mate forced me to worry. The strange thing was that he just wasn't there…if he had been dead when I woke up, there wouldn't be a problem, but he was _gone, _so something most definitely happened. It was a big mystery, even to someone like me, but I knew now wasn't the time to be solving _why_ he was gone.

I just needed to know _where_ he went.

With my goal in mind, I stood up and wiped myself down, making sure no grass or insects were on me. I took one last look around our site in hopes of finding the swordsman snoring away, his green hair acting like camouflage in the thick vegetation. All I saw where the same trees and plants surrounding us.

I sighed as I walked over to my orange haired friend and knelt in front of her sleeping figure. I placed my hand on her shoulder and gently, but effectively, shook her to wake her up. She slightly stirred, much to my amusement, as she shifted her body a little, all the while keeping her eyes closed.

"I'll be up…in a little…Robin. Just…until Sanji's…done with breakfast," she mumbled in her sleep. I frowned, looking at her peaceful mood. Not because I was jealous of her sleeping well, but because we weren't in the women's quarters, Sanji was not making breakfast…for us at least, and she would soon remember what we were going through. It was something one would call _bittersweet,_ and it pained me to know that we were separated from the majority of our crew.

Although I did wonder exactly _how_ she was comfortable sleeping on the island floor…

"Nami-san… You need to wake up now…" I cooed, loud enough for her to hear and process it. I decided to wait until she came back to her senses before I unveiled the bad news.

"Uhhh…alright I'm awake…" the orange haired woman complained, sitting up and rubbing her eyes. The sun had become blocked by a few clouds which drastically made a difference. The temperature cooled slightly and Nami was not blinded by the sun like I was.

As she opened her eyes for the first time, the thief was staring right at me, until she noticed we weren't on the Sunny and she was most definitely not in her bed. Her eyes widened as she frantically looked around us, and I couldn't help but think that I must have looked the same way a day ago.

"Damn it…not again," she cried as she curled her knees up and rested her head on them.

"It seems you slept well," I half smiled towards her.

"Yeah, well it could have been a lot better… I did the same thing yesterday, and getting your hopes up while sleeping is actually really annoying," she complained. I couldn't help but smile at her behavior, but I knew it really must have been 'annoying' and it was quite saddening.

"Here," I motioned, reaching my hand down to help her up. She took it with a 'thanks' and I pulled her into a standing position, watching her do the same thing I had done as she looked over herself.

"So Robin…what exactly are we going to do now? 'Surviving' is a pretty broad statement to go by," she pointed out. "The best thing we could do is search the island some more to see if we can find anything," Nami suggested. That would have been my plan if everything else was okay…

"Well Nami-san, you're right…but we have a bigger problem than simply surviving at the moment," I told her, preparing to spill the news.

She seemed to notice that something was wrong. "W-What do you mean?"

Instead of directly answering her, I moved to the side, revealing the spot where Zoro used to be. The grass was still flattened down by his weight and the navigator seemed to catch on.

"I thought he was barely alive! Where the hell did that moron go?!" she asked rhetorically, but seemed to expect an answer.

"I haven't the faintest idea…" I responded.

"Wait…Robin, you don't know where he went?" questioned the navigator immediately.

"No. I woke up a few minutes ago and he was gone," I said, "We need to find him."

"Yeah, you're right. When I get my hands on him…"

"Nami-san, he was unconscious when we brought him here last night, so I doubt he left on his own. I fear we may be dealing with something else…" I explained.

"You mean like he may have been taken or something?" she questioned.

"Perhaps. There's no telling what may have happened to him on an island like this, so all possibilities must be accounted for."

The navigator quickly calmed down and began to think, putting her hands on her hips.

"So basically we still have to search the island for that idiot in addition to anything else."

"Basically."

"He's still going to have hell to pay when we find him. I'll have to raise his debt three hundred percent," she smirked. Not trying to understand the navigator's logic, I redirected the conversation back to our situation.

"Nami-san, we still have to be careful. I highly doubt our swordsman just got up and walked away…so something must have happened. If that's the case, we must hurry while avoiding any danger," I explained.

"Mmm…we should probably stick together then. If one of us gets lost or in trouble, we won't be able to do anything about it, and I really don't feel like losing you Robin," pleaded Nami.

"Right, let's stick together."

And with that we left our campsite and made our way into the forest, praying that Zoro was alright.

* * *

?

This is bad.

I've walked for hours and I haven't found the slightest crew as to where anyone else was. It sure as hell didn't seem like we stopped here for anything. This island seemed deserted, like a small uncharted island out in the middle of the sea. Something was definitely going on…I could feel it.

"Ahh…damn it…" I swore, gritting my teeth and holding my abdomen. I could barely breathe and my vision and mind were extremely hazy. I still have no idea how I ended up like this. The only recent fight I remember was with a few marines back at our last island, but there's no way I ended up like this from a couple wimpy soldiers.

Judging by the fact that I've got such a bad wound, even for me, something bad must have happened. I can hardly think now, but I know I have to find the others. If I ended up like this, something worse could have happened to anyone else, and I've got to make sure they're alright.

"What…the…hell…?" I said as I slowly limped out from behind a few trees. Not too far away, I saw a steep cliff that stretched up past the trees around it. There was also an opening in the forest surrounding it, where no trees or plants grew, and the cliff appeared to be in the center of said opening. I leaned up against a tree on the outer edge of the circular opening, not wanting to walk blindly into the grassy plain. I still didn't know where I was, so I was going to talk absolutely no risks, especially in my condition.

Surveying the area, I found nothing out of the ordinary until I looked up on the top of the giant cliff, only to see a few giant boulders leaning over the edge. It was a recipe for disaster, seeing as how each rock was almost half the size of the Going Merry alone, but although they were leaning off the edge of the cliff, they looked to be quite stable.

Or at least I hoped they were…

"There's definitely…something weird…about this place…" I mumbled to myself as I cringed in pain because of it. I couldn't talk and I wasn't sure why I kept trying to…because it hurt like hell. But either way, I didn't like this place. Even if I was with everyone and I wasn't bleeding to death I still wouldn't like it. All I knew was if there were people here, or anything for that matter, I should stand clear of them. I would be very surprised if a place like this _didn't _have hostile inhabitants. And true I was severely injured and could use some help, but it wasn't like I was going to die or anything. The future greatest swordsman dying for some unknown reason in some shitty jungle? Yeah right.

I just needed to focus my energy and find the others. That was all that mattered. Because if I was like this, then there's no telling what might have happened to them.

"Gah…ugh…s…shit…" I swore lowering myself to the ground while leaning on a tree. This damn injury was really starting to piss me off. For once I actually wished Chopper was here to treat me…because I wasn't going to get anywhere like this. I closed my eyes, intent on resting for a brief period before I went out searching again, but before I knew it I was asleep against the tree. I suppose a short nap wouldn't hurt…

* * *

As the two pirates delved deeper into the forest, the island's sun shone brighter and fiercer, much to their displeasure. The wind calmed down and the humidity picked up as Nami and Robin continued under the sea of trees. Their goal: find the green haired first mate.

"Oh my god…it's so hot…I feel like I'm going to collapse any second now. It was fine just a few minutes ago, and then it just _had_ to get all humid!" yelled Nami trailing behind the raven haired archeologist.

"More like almost an hour ago. We've been walking for quite some time now…"clarified Robin who didn't even bother turning around. Nami just frowned and caught up to the older woman.

"Aren't you dying Robin? I mean I've always liked warm places, but this is just too much!" she complained.

Robin stopped and turned her head to look her counterpart. "Yes I'm not a fan of this weather either, but we're lucky enough to be shielded by these trees. Let's be thankful we're hot from the humidity and not hot from the sun's rays. We can't expose ourselves to the sun for long periods of time, especially with our set of clothes," she explained.

Nami studied their current fashion state. Both women we're scantily clothed, not because they wanted to be, but because that's how they ended up. Nami didn't really have a problem with it, besides the fact that here clothes were slightly ripped here and there.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. It's still really hot though…"

The archeologist smiled, "Yes, I know. We can take a break if you would like. Let's settle here for a few minutes," Robin said, examining a tree next to here. Nami immediately sat down against a tree opposite of her friend, stretching her arms and legs.

"So, let's say we do find that idiot…what exactly are we supposed to do then?"

"I'm not sure. Finding our crewmates is our number one priority, regardless of the situation. If we do find him, I suppose we'll simply continue searching the island until there is nothing left to search," explained the devil fruit user.

Nami pouted, "So I guess we'll just have to wait and see regarding the others…"

"You're probably right… Although, if you, the swordsman, and I all washed up on this island, then there's a chance some others did as well. That's why we must find Zoro-san and continue looking."

"You keep worrying about him, Robin. He'll be fine…where ever the hell he is," lectured Nami. "He may have been hurt, but I'm sure he'll pull through."

"Nami-san, did you see his injuries? They weren't even close to being the kind one can just shake off. He needs medical attention, and that still doesn't explain how he disappeared like that in the middle of the night. He wouldn't just walk away…" reasoned the raven haired woman.

"He _would_ just walk away. Zoro's stupid when it comes to things like this. He can act like a strategic genius during a fight, but then act like a complete dumbass during a time like this. And you know how he is when it comes to wandering off…he gets lost," she warned. Robin greatly respected Zoro, especially after he had come to her aid countless times. Everything had changed at Enies Lobby, and she knew Zoro trusted her afterwards, but she had always respected him just like she respected Luffy. Although his sense of direction was god awful, she knew he was smart. He was the only one, besides her and occasionally Sanji, who knew what to do at times like these. At certain times, he seemed to have the experience of an eighty year old sage, but that was most likely due to his swordsmanship.

Robin finally broke out of her thought process and turned to the orange haired girl, "Well either way, we still need to hurry and find him. He _is_ gravely wounded after all…" The archeologist motioned to continue moving along through the trees.

"Hmph…I guess you're right…again," complained Nami as she stood up and hesitantly followed the older woman. "Robin, have I ever told you how smart you are."

Robin didn't bother turning around, but she still smiled. "Mmm…don't count yourself out Nami-san. You're the brightest navigator I know," she stated truthfully.

"Huh…well, thanks Robin," Nami said, putting her hands on her hips and raised her chin up high. Robin chuckled at her childish antics.

"You're the best archeologist I-"

"Look at this…" interrupted Robin as she peered through a section of trees. Thinking it was something urgent, Nami ran up next to her to take a look.

"What is it-" Nami poked her head through the trees.

"It appears to be a deforested section of the island…" explained the raven-haired woman.

"Yeah, and there's a giant cliff in the middle of it. Like a mountain ridge or something," guessed the navigator.

"Correct. It seems very odd in my opinion. A perfect circle with nothing but grass and a large cliff in the middle? We've seen nothing on this island so far…and now we see this…" Robin tossed ideas around inside her head.

"Should we go look around?" asked Nami.

"It isn't exactly smart to randomly wander into open areas in a place like this…but we don't really have a choice. We'll need to keep our guards up the entire time," she warned. "We can't risk anything at a time like this, but we still need to find Zoro-san. If he disappeared during the night, then there's a possibility he may have been taken…and if that's the case, there are things on this island that don't want us here."

Nami sweat dropped and looked her companion in the eyes, noticing that she was completely serious…as always. Robin had a thing for making everyone more frightened than they already were, and now was an example of it. Knowing that _things_ didn't want them on the island perturbed Nami a lot and she wasn't in the condition to worry about such things.

"Okay, but I don't have my Clima Tact with me, so I don't know if I'll be of much use. I must have left it on the ship…" regretted the orange haired girl. That was certainly a heavy blow to their already lacking strength. Not only was Nami not able to fry hundreds of attackers with a thunderbolt, but now she was a vulnerable target for anything that decided to attack.

Robin looked back at her friend, "Don't worry; I have no intention of charging into danger like the rest of our crew would, so just be prepared to run if we encounter anything."

"Be prepared to run? Robin, don't compare me to Usopp just because I don't have a weapon! I can still fight!" Nami raised her fists to show that she was ready, causing Robin to chuckle.

"Relax Nami-san, if we come across any trouble, I'll end up running as well. We're not in a position to be the aggressors, and I'm sure you wouldn't want to get caught up in a fight now."

Nami pouted in defeat for what seemed to be the tenth time that day, although she didn't question Robin. Her trust in her friend was the strongest thing on the island and if they were to make it off alive, they would need to believe in one another like never before.

"So are you ready?" asked the archeologist as she slowly crept through the trees.

"Yeah, let's do it…"

With that said, the two pirates cautiously made their way into the circle, no longer hidden beneath the ocean of vegetation like they once were. Knowing full well that there was no strategic way to enter an open area, the two walked straight up the middle towards the cliff, each woman scanning three hundred sixty degrees around them.

"Do you see anything Robin?" whispered the navigator.

The pirate didn't move her gaze from the trees surrounding them. "Not a soul…"

After a few minutes of warily making their way across the open field, the two managed to stand face to face with the cliff. Continuing to scour the area, Robin walked up to the ridge's wall, noticing it was a straight ninety degree angle up to the top.

"Maybe there's nothing here…" Nami suggested.

"Maybe," was all the archeologist replied with, her eyes still gazing upward. "But please Nami-san, you must be prepared for any and everything."

"You too Robin," said Nami who was still meters away from the cliff. She looked up as well, and her eyes widened for a split second. "Hey, Robin! Be careful! There's a bunch of huge rocks at the top!" she yelled in case they would fall.

Robin smiled at her crew mate's concern but took it mind still, "Don't worry Nami-san, they won't be moving anywhere. The larger portion of each rock is on top of the cliff, rather than hanging off, so they won't fall."

"If you say so. Just be careful though…"

Robin smiled, "I will." Then Robin noticed something engraved in the side of the cliff and her archeologist instincts began to click in. She slowly ran her finger across the lettering, attempting to decipher to writing.

"Did you find something, Robin?" asked Nami, walking towards the rock wall where her crew mate stood. She noticed the symbols sketched into the rock that Robin was studying.

"Whoa…"

"They seem to be old markings used by the inhabitants of this island. I've never seen anything like this before…" admitted Robin as she closely examined the script. Hearing Robin say something like that was a once in a lifetime thing, considering she normally would have read about the island they were on in a book somewhere.

"What does it say?" asked the navigator, eager to get even an ounce of information.

"Hold on…this may take some time…" responded the pirate. Nami could tell Robin was extremely focused with the way she furrowed her eye brows and moved her eyes systematically.

Nami knew she wasn't going to be any help trying to decipher ancient text, so she decided to do something she could help with. "I'm going to go keep look out around the area. Just call if you need anything," she told Robin.

"Alright, just be careful. I'll call you over once I'm done," Robin muttered as she continued scanning the message.

"Gotcha." Nami began walking towards the outer rim of the opening to keep watch. Just as she got a few feet away from the cliff, the ground started to shake violently, startling both the navigator and archeologist. Nami lost her balance and fell to the ground, turning around to see if her friend was alright.

"Robin! Are you alright!" Nami yelled desperately.

"Yes, I'm fine!" she yelled back over the vibration of the island. The shaking was getting even more aggressive as Robin steadied her feet and Nami attempted to stand. All of a sudden, Robin snapped her head to the top of the cliff, only to see the giant mass of rock begin to split down the middle. Her eyes widened, not wanting the ancient writing to be destroyed.

"Robin! MOVE!" screamed Nami from afar. The navigator watched as the cliff split about half way down the middle, and Robin was right underneath it.

Robin knew she could do nothing to save the text. In a split second decision, Robin's impulsiveness took over and she dashed to the writing, attempting to decipher it before everything was destroyed. The cracking of the ridge could be heard throughout the entire island as the vibration continued.

"That…idiot…" a low, gruff voice muttered aloud.

"ROBIN! WHAT ARE YOU DOING!? FORGET ABOUT THAT!" the navigator screamed at Robin's reckless behavior.

Just then the crack running down the cliff jolted to the bottom left corner, cracking through the left side of the writing and meeting the ground. Robin knew that was it. Any second now and the left side of the mountain would come sliding down, and she was right next to it. Knowing well that she didn't want to die here, the archeologist turned to start running away from the shattering rock. But before she could move, the left half of the cliff detached from the cliff itself and came tumbling to the ground, spreading dust and debris everywhere. Luckily Robin was not hit by it because she was more towards the right, but she couldn't see a thing.

Nami felt to her knees once again, staring at the dust filled space she last saw her friend. She couldn't see Robin anymore, and after watching a piece of stone almost the size of the Thousand Sunny fall only meters away, she knew it would take a miracle for Robin to come out okay.

Robin was inside the dust field, coughing and trying to cover her eyes so no dust got in. What she did was stupid and she was stupid for doing it. But she didn't have time to chastise herself, because she knew the rest of the mountain could collapse at the drop of a hat. Collecting herself and opening her eyes slightly, Robin found that the dust had started to subside. Looking straight through the now faint dust, she saw the orange haired navigator on the ground straight ahead.

"Nami-san…" Robin coughed, glad to see she was alright.

"R-Robin!? …ROBIN!" Nami yelled in disbelief, leaning closer to get a better look. She could barely see the older woman in front of the cliff with all the dust, but knew that it was her. "COME ON, ROBIN! HURRY!"

Robin wasted no time listening to her crew mate. She secured her balance and began to make her way out of the dusty area. She'd be safe as long as she was away from the mountain; however it wasn't that easy, because at that moment the island gave one last brutal shake. Once again, the archeologist was caught off balance but this time she fell to the ground hard. Nami was yelling something, but she couldn't hear anything. Everything went silent as she rolled over on the ground, looking straight up at one of the giant boulders falling right over her. She tensed, crossing her arms over her chest in her signature position with the intention of stopping the boulder with countless arms. The woman was smart, she knew it was useless. The rock wasn't even close to being a manageable size and she mentally cursed herself as it came closer and closer.

Robin was one the ground and didn't have enough time to move before the rock would smash on top of her. She grit her teeth and tensed her muscles. _'What a stupid way to die…'_ she thought. Her family went through everything to save her, declared war against the government, and she was finally able to live her life the way she always wanted to. And now she was going to be crushed by a several ton stone because she was too stupid to run away.

"ROOOOBBBBIIIIIIIIIN!" screamed the orange haired pirate.

The boulder blocked out the sun and Robin was in complete darkness. She watched from the ground as the boulder came right down on her. She tightly closed her eyes and prepared herself for the grueling pain that was about to overcome her.

And then it came.

...

Nami cried, tears falling from her eyes. The navigator watched pitifully as Robin fell, only to be met with a giant boulder right after.

* * *

**Hurray!** **Chapter 5 is complete! And it's a cliffhanger!**

**This was still a bit boring, since the only real action present is between Robin and a couple of rocks...but they'll get better, trust me!**

**I know me of all people writing a cliffhanger is like istant death, since I update like every other decade, but I've already started the next chapter. I'll TRY to have it finished by the end of this week, but July 4th is on Thursday, so hopefully I can work around it.**

**Thanks for the continued support everyone! See you next time! (**whenever that'll be...**:)**

**That was a joke... Hahaha...whatever...**


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